Well €990 to be exact which was the price of this whiskey when it was released in 2021. Today, it’s available for almost double the price on some online shops or often below its retail price from auctions. I was planning to keep this for a while but alas, it has been opened during last Christmas break and I’m now revisiting it for my first review of the year.

2024 was a great year for exploring more whiskeys but I’ve not been as active in writing reviews as life and work took over. Part of my new year’s resolution (can we still talk about that?) is to drink less but enjoy it more. Enjoy in a sense that I drink it with other people who appreciate it as well and also the mental enjoyment I derive out of this hobby by picking the liquid apart and doing some research on it.

There’s a few reasons for this conscious slowdown in consumption. First, age is catching up and health is becoming more of a priority for me. Second, there seems to be a general fatigue in my circle of whiskey enthusiast friends brought about by a barrage of new releases and skyrocketing inflation. Whilst before the thrill of the chase is half the enjoyment, every purchase now needs a level of self-justification. Lastly, the secondary market for whiskey has fallen. Although I don’t buy whiskey as an investment, there’s something disappointing when you see a whiskey you bought for retail fetch lower at auctions. This has encouraged me to clear my stock rather than keep buying. At least before, the increasing prices kept me from opening some bottles that I thought had the chance to increase to a point where I can’t open it anymore. I don’t have a crystal ball and who knows when it will start to go back up again. It’s all cyclical anyways but for now, I’d rather enjoy what I have.

To prove this point to myself, I opened this bottle of Bushmills 32 Year Old Port Cask Finish – LMDW (Cask no. 6096). I purchased it when it was released in 2021 and at that time is the oldest single malt whiskey I ever purchased. It’s part of an earlier release of the Bushmills Causeway Collection and exclusive to the French retailer, La Maison du Whisky. I love Port-finished whiskeys and this having its full maturation in a first-fill ruby port cask made me really want it. Imagine, Bushmills over three decades in a Port cask, this expression from Bushmills carried immense promise.

I mentioned earlier that I opened this during the Christmas period and I did it with a small group of whiskey lovers. Although everybody tried to stop me from opening it, they also all did not try very hard. We all had small sips and agreed then that it’s a top notch whiskey but hard to justify at the price. I’ve since been able to revisit this on my own the last month to form my own opinion. I’ll share the tasting notes from the bottle below after my own tasting notes which I wrote before even seeing the official notes.

Colour: Dark amber, lighter than mahogany but a deep rich auburn. It looks like what a whiskey should look like in movies.

Nose: Clove, orange peel, very reminiscent of hot port, honey, wood varnish, baked goods, cherry pie. There’s quite a lot going on with the nose but they don’t jump out. There’s also still some hint of alcohol but most likely coming from it being cask strength at 50.1% ABV and me not nosing as much as before. It’s what I imagine people new to whiskey smell when they first nose a whiskey and say it smells like whiskey.

Palate: Blackcurrant is prominent. Lots of spice like cloves. It has a medium mouthfeel and quite pleasant to chew and drink. First impression is it doesn’t carry the strong Bushmills DNA as much as most Bushmills liquid I’ve tried which is a surprise. Most likely the 32 years in port. Vanilla sweetness then oak tannins on the back.

Finish: Disappointingly short. I don’t know if I just had very high expectations for this whiskey given the price but the finish just didn’t last as long as I wanted to. The flavours were there and intact with great continuity but then it’s gone.

Score: 8/10

Is it worth it? Not for me. I guess it’s all relevant but there’s plenty of options at this level of price if you want a better whiskey. It’s a nice complex whiskey with a lot of layers on the palate. The packaging looks impressive and it will always be a crowd pleaser. Knowing what I know now, I’d opt for 2 bottles of Redbreast 27 at that kind of money. However, there’s a premium to pay for single cask expressions like this, especially at this age. I’m happy I opened it and was able to share it with some people.